Obnoxious Listeners - Latest Comments in Song Structure

Re: Song Structure

Connor!~ — Tue, 03 May 2011 03:30:36 -0000

A lot of the problem isn't just the lack of true creativity, the lack of the masses ability to truly see creativity for what it is, and the artists pumping out mainstream music, it's the fact that we are subject to so much music and the way we are raised (it seems anyway) that we (we being a very broad term encompassing mostly devoted radio listeners) become very ADD with music. Have you noticed that within the past few years I can hardly thing of a band or single artist who is really memorable.Sure, there are a couple, but no Biggie, no DMB, no Aerosmith! You get my point, right? It's because we move on quickly.

And with that, I've kind of forgotten where I was going with this.
anyway! I like your articles! even if I am a year late.

Re: Song Structure

meow mix coupons — Wed, 09 Mar 2011 13:17:19 -0000

Very nice, I'm gonna try some of these, i don't know if they will work with me as i with to, but i'm gonna give this a try.
...

Re: Song Structure

casual summer dresses — Tue, 08 Mar 2011 12:09:09 -0000

Hey, i Think your blog is good!! I found it on Google I think i will come back one day
...

Re: Song Structure

Nolan — Fri, 12 Jun 2009 12:14:23 -0000

"Lost" SpoilAr FTL Sadfayce....

Re: Song Structure

oneillbp — Wed, 10 Jun 2009 18:19:40 -0000

Ah, I think I must have inferred some misc comment about "their following" as directed towards the band. I stand corrected (and also like a good bit of DMB stuff too!)

Re: Song Structure

Dan — Wed, 10 Jun 2009 10:03:13 -0000

Really? I actually like a lot of DMB. I even mentioned Carter Beauford
in my drumming editorial. That said, I don't much care for the bulk of
their following.

Re: Song Structure

oneillbp — Wed, 10 Jun 2009 09:32:36 -0000

Dan - I'm quite impressed that their was no snide comment in reply to the DMB reference! haha....

Re: Song Structure

Dan — Tue, 09 Jun 2009 22:25:02 -0000

Hi Tom! Thanks for the feedback. I'd say I'm about 99% on board with what you're saying. Actually, I think everything you've said is right, but there's something about the mass consumers that gravitate towards familiarity we could add. These type of listeners often don't know what they're listening to, and I think bands could compromise a little bit without the masses catching on necessarily (or maybe even get inspired to find more music). There are certainly bands out there that play mainstream music and are very much artistically inclined. It's just easier to crank out the mainstream without bothering with the artistic side so much. I will almost certainly be made fun of for this, but you know what... Toto is an example of this. This band is very much pop music, but if you listen carefully, they're actually great musicians. Even though I'm relatively young (and certainly wasn't around for it), but the mainstream rock music from the 60's, 70's, and even some of the 80's had much more talent than the mainstream rock out now. I feel like the music industry is turning more and more into a bi-partisan entity... it's almost like escalation. Internet has given the gift of music to more people than ever, pulling in more and more people into the mainsteam. Trying to counter this, there's more and more artistic and unique music coming out. On the surface this doesn't seem so bad, but the problem is this creativity gets drowned out and doesn't reach the audience it really deserves. On the bright side, for those that actually take initiative, it's easier than ever to find amazing new music.

I guess the short of it is that I think mainstream musicians could incorporate subtle creativity that doesn't push away the masses but is enough to intrigue more eclectic listeners.

Re: Song Structure

Tom — Tue, 09 Jun 2009 14:52:23 -0000

I think this is fantastic and dead on. I am a professional bassist who has played music outside the Philadelphia area for over 20 years and I wish music audiences would wake up from the "spoon fed" mentailty. I'm thinking of an Ozzy Osbourne line, "the media sells it and you play the role". There's a consumer based reason why formulaic music works - it's because "the masses" actually favor it. My experience says that no matter whether I'm playing in a top notch band or subbing for a much lower quality act, "All Summer Long/Sweet Home Alabama" always works not so for original music or genuinely creative covers, which is a great risk. Most often you'll get blank stares from most albeit a great response from a few genuinely energized patrons. Economically it's a tough choice knowing that the band can be fed on the same old sets but likely live very lean on "outside mainstream" music. I am not arguing this is necessarily the fault of the spoon-fed masses - the onus of responsibility is on original bands to create inspiring enough music and performances to break people out of their routines, so the music has to be not only creative, but MOVING (as in move people out of their houses for a Tues eve show). Sadly, the execution of the Mon-Wed eve original bands is often below par to that of the Thurs-Sat the cover bands, serving to dilute the interest in original music even further. The music consumer wants value for money - and generally they get it on the live music scene with very good cover bands. Bands that contribute something new to music, such as The Dave Matthews Band, often have to pay a high price - living poorly for years on end before enough of a "snowball" in audience support catapults them to self-sustainability. I think there's a basic mechanism of human nature at the root of this: in general, people like "familiarity" - it's safe and comfortable to know what to expect. Fewer people - and the ones I admire more - aren't afraid to give something strage a relisten or risk going to a club not knowing what to expect. The main point is that, sadly, the economics are on the side of the same old stale formulas. To the musicians out there, I ask "what are you willing to give up for your art?"

Re: Song Structure

Mike — Fri, 05 Jun 2009 16:01:15 -0000

If ever all my free time is spent watching ANY television show (or combination thereof), remind me to shoot myself! Although actually, I am reminded of that week in which I watched every episode of Futurama... that wasn't so bad.

Re: Song Structure

Dan — Thu, 04 Jun 2009 20:45:03 -0000

1st paragraph: If I had made that specific observation before, it was subconscious.

4th: I didn't mean to imply time had anything to do with the connection to other media. The connection I meant to make was that predictability (particularly of the structure, aka the Mr. Coffee effect) of songs, movies, tv shows, etc, is like the scratching of a chalk board. I guess I could have done a better job have making a clearer distinction between the points made in paragraph 3 and 4.

Brian: I'm prepared to bring ear plugs next time I come.

Mike: House? psh... What ever free time you have away from the site should be spent watching The Wire!

Re: Song Structure

Mike — Thu, 04 Jun 2009 11:19:11 -0000

1st paragraph: I refuse to believe that you only recently made this "profound observation" as to what separates quality music from most radio stuff.

3rd paragraph: I agree with every single word! Without hearing a single audio clip, I am immediately turned off if an album has a suspiciously low variation in song lengths.

4th paragraph: I don't think it's entirely fair to compare radio to television in this way. My point is that a song can still get plenty of radio play even if it doesn't fit the standard mold of a ~3 min. track (Stairway To Heaven and Freebird are two blatant examples). Due to the format that networks impose on tv shows however, every episode MUST be ~22 or ~44 minutes in length. This inherently puts a restriction on tv shows that doesn't exist for songs on the radio. That being said, there's probably not a good reason why every episode must tell a complete story... 'to be continued's don't happen nearly enough in my estimation.
For example, House is one of my favorite tv shows because of the witty banter, acting, and drama. However I know that roughly 95% of the time, sure enough House figures out exactly what's wrong with the patient when there's about 4 minutes left in the show. Not coincidentally, I think my favorite episode was the 2-part season finale last year. The extended length allowed for a more creative and well-developed story line, plus *SPOILER ALERT* someone actually died at the end (gasp!).

final paragraph: I'm glad you explicitly stated that a more complicated structure doesn't necessarily imply a better song - sometimes simplicity rules!

Re: Song Structure

oneillbp — Mon, 01 Jun 2009 22:28:02 -0000

The N.I.B cover you heard is actually from Primus off of the Nativity in Black II tribute album http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/N... - and for the record, I totally hate any and every version of that horrible song. I'm sorry I subjected you to that specific song.

And next time you come to my patio, instead of Octane on Sirius...I'm going to play all Elvis 24x7 and make you listen to it till your ears bleed!